Film techniques used to emphasize themes in V for Vendetta
In the film V for Vendetta, the director, James McTeigue uses symbolism, costume and dialogue to emphasise the idea of everybody having a right to individuality, and the right - and duty – to resist forced conformism.
James McTeigue uses symbolism in the film V for Vendetta to juxtapose the idea of individuality and the resistance of forced conformity. The first important symbol used in the film is V’s mask. This symbol is shown in all of the scenes V appears in and again in the very last scene. In this scene thousands of citizens gather wearing the masks and remove them. Masks often symbolize a character hiding their identity. This final scene when the citizens remove their
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At the beginning of the film, Evey dresses to blend in with the crowds; she wears light colours, nothing that stands out. However towards the end of the film, V helps Evey to lose her fear and discover who she is. He shaves her head. After this point in the film Evey begins to wear darker coloured clothing such as blacks and greys, and wears her bald head with pride. She does not cover it with wigs or hats. This is similar to the costume changes shown in the film the Matrix, which James McTeigue helped direct. While in the Matrix the characters wear darker clothes, these colours show a change in attitude and the characters’ desires to resist being controlled and forced into conformity by the Machines. This change in costume is similar to that of V for Vendetta, which shows Evey’s new-found confidence in her identity, and her willingness to resist conforming to the totalitarian society she lives in. In doing this, the director urges viewers to try to find their own individuality and resist the conformism in their own lives. He uses this film to warn viewers of the dangers of not resisting forced conformism, through the lack of change in costume in the other characters. In 2011 an article was posted on Enotes which reads “V's legacy for change is embodied in Evey, which is reflective of how individuals
History has a tendency to repeat itself. One of humanity’s most popular ways of getting its point across is through violence. When words are no longer enough to argue a point, human casualties not only directly solve the problem, but symbolically send a message to all those affected as well. Just as the American colonies fought against the British for Freedom when their voice was no longer heard, and just as the Islamic extremists used terrorism to send an evil message to America, both V and Chancellor Sutler used violence to gain a voice in a world of chaos.
In V for Vendetta, there are many symbols that represent the fascist society. Marinetti’s reading, The Founding and Manifesto of Futurism, he writes about the “beauty” that can be seen in fascist work. Marinetti’s manifesto declares, “we affirm the world’s magnificence has been enriched by a new beauty: the beauty of speed.” In this example, the machine is a car and it is appealing because of its power. In V for Vendetta, FATE is the computer used by the leader where he can see what the people of London are doing. “You said I love you...” (p. 184) The leader has love for the computer and we can see how he almost worships the machine and talks to it. The leader makes little contact with the people of London. For example, “The mouth” who oversee propaganda and the other branches give public announcements. The leader
Many symbols are used in V for vendetta one of these is V’s mask, also known as the Guy Fawkes mask. This mask is now one of the most popular symbols ever, it is seen everywhere: in the 80’s the comic book series ‘V for vendetta’, then in the film adaptation in 2005 and now it’s a popular symbol with the cyber terrorist group ‘Anonymous’. In the film adaptation of ‘V for vendetta’ the mask is used to conceal the true identity of the protagonist V. During one of the last scenes of the film, V is choking Mr. Creedy and he says to him “Beneath this mask there is more than flesh. Beneath this mask there is an idea, Mr. Creedy, and ideas are bulletproof.”. This clearly shows us that V doesn’t want to be remember as a man, as men die, but he wants to be remembered as an idea, as ideas can last forever.
V for Vendetta opens similarly, immediately addressing the absence of freedom and independence coexistent in 1984. Following a montage of Evie and V, the dystopic qualities of their world are quickly revealed. Curfews set up along with roaming Fingermen emphasis the freedom that has been removed from its citizen’s as well as the implied illegal action towards something as ordinary as going to dinner with her boss. McTeigue emphasises this element of forsaken freedom and independence through the use of the Film Noir with the dark forbidden scenes portraying the danger in Evie’s actions. The use of medium and long shots was used to convey her anxiety while also revealing the scenery dotted with the sinister fingermen. Complete with the tense music playing during the scene it exposes to the audience the dystopic nature of the society present in the film.
The film 'V for Vendetta' directed by James McTeigue addresses the idea of governmental authority and control in our society. One key scene where this is portrayed is in the opening, where Evey goes out to visit Gordon Deitrich after curfew. The futuristic landscape of a totalitarian England is displayed here, where the oppressive party in power have created a culture of fear to ensure the conformity of the citizens. However, in contrast, the final scene of the film where a crowd converges to watch Parliament blow up, illustrates a further idea. That when united, it is the people who have the power to change their society, through rebellion and political uprising.
'Shawshank Redemption' directed by Frank Darabont is a compelling film about the life of one of its prisoners, Andy. many film techniques were used through out the film as a clever way of conveying main themes. This essay is going to examine how Darabont used camera angles and colour effectively in this film to portray the idea of power.
The various cinematic features and imagery used in V for Vendetta and Fahrenheit 451 display the theme of individuals and their fight to overcome oppression. The cinematic features in V for Vendetta include sound, camera angles and flashbacks. McTeigue cleverly uses different techniques in scenes which leave an impact on the audience, how the individuals are able to unite. The music in the background which plays each time the bombs destroy a government building, creates the theme of freedom. With each explosion, there is a sense of each individual becoming freer in the society in which they no longer want to live in. As the music intensifies, achieving victory. Flashbacks are important to the theme of oppression because
To continue, V for Vendetta was Allan Moore 's response to what he witnessed as a corrupt government under the rein of the late Margaret Thatcher. V for Vendetta is a graphic novel that demonstrates what would happen if humans fully committed themselves to the social contract, the law of nature, as illustrated by Thomas Hobbes. V for Vendetta is set in a
Of the many symbolic masks, the Guy Fawkes mask stands out as one of the most effective, often being used as a “masked identity” in order to make profound statements. Not only does this secret identity create more attention to the “masked one” but it also diverts attention to the cause rather than the identity. Literally using a mask, Fawkes was the main influence of the character “V”, in James McTeigue’s, V For Vendetta. V’s connections and motivations to Guy Fawkes, his attempt to justify himself as a terrorist, and V’s concealment of his true identity, collectively define the message that V conveys to his audience: to break parliament and take control of their own country.
It’s a title with a strong letter used as somewhat like a alliteration to exaggerate the ideas within this film, ‘V for Vendetta’, directed by James McTeigue, this defines what the true meaning of injustice which seems to be over exaggerated through action, sci-fi and thriller scenes. ‘V for Vendetta’ is a type of film where in a future, where there was a British tyranny or corruption in the government, a shadowy freedom fighter plots to overthrow it with the help of a young woman. This film shows the message of the best advice is to stop fighting it and embrace the fact that you have been given an opportunity if you chose to view it with a different set of eyes. And yet there will be many who miss this opportunity as they feel a false sense of security operating in the belief systems that harbor fear, anger and hate rather than letting go to face the very emotions that enslave them.This film uses fancy quotes or catch phrases, with a strong act of violence in acting around the main character(s), especially the protagonist ‘V’ and to the eventuality, ‘Evey’ at the end of the story. Special effects and the fanatical costume visuals (with the famous Guy Fawkes mask) all is used intently to make the audience with a tint of exhilarance, to make them think, what does this mean? What is the idea that V is trying to show in injustice? Through elements found in the film I’ve found that,......
2. Altieri, C. 2003. The particulars of rapture: An aesthetics of the affects, Ithaca, N.Y: Cornell University Press.
Furthermore, symbols can drive a society to bring about change by helping identify a cause to work towards. As people lose their faith in the Norsefire regime, V begins introducing symbols of his own to represent anarchy and rebellion against oppression. Throughout the comic, V defaces government property by carving a V within a circle after an act of resistance. This sign quickly becomes a symbol of rebellion against injustice and
V for Vendetta is set in the future in England and it depicts the events following a major world war, terrorist attacks and large amounts of degradation within the nation and world. The government that is in power is at first shown as the standard postindustrial government that uses media to inform the people, and in most cases, spread their form of propaganda. The government prides itself in being efficient, in maintain control and the safety of its citizens. The film slowly shows how the government took power and how its use of power resembles a model like Weber’s. To take power, there had to be a party that could seize power, this is where the bottom line focus came in. The seizing power used fear, but they use of terrorist attacks committed by
“V for Vendetta" is a movie about freedom, about human struggle against the state, the government of the sacrifice of a symbol. V for Vendetta was born from the successful combination of a sudden, seemingly incongruous things: out of the comic’s conventions and the anti-globalization pathos. I think this movie is a combination of the of Lewis Carroll’s abstract absurdity and George Orwell’s totalitarian nightmare. Alice meets with Hitler. Evey dressed up and went out on a date, but instead of rabbit hole, she found the black "funnel". Once the British had already made a movie "It Happened Here," an alternative fantasy on the theme of the Nazi’s occupation of England - now the enemy did not come from outside but from the inside. In the near future, England is living under a power of tyrant, neurotic clown with flabby face. Supreme Chancellor autocratically governed the country. Bishops are concerned about the moral health of the nation. People are constantly live in fear of external threat after the tragic virus attacks a few years ago. Every person sentenced to death if he keeps a Koran. Same thing for the "unnatural" sex. There was nothing else to be executed for;
V for Vendetta sets the Gunpowder Plot as V's historical inspiration, contributing to his choice of timing, language and appearance For example, the names Rookwood, Percy and Keyes are used in the film, which are also the names of three of the Gunpowder conspirators. The film creates parallels to Alexandre Dumas' The Count of Monte Cristo, by drawing direct comparisons between V and Edmond Dantès. (In both stories, the hero escapes an unjust and traumatic imprisonment and spends decades preparing to take vengeance on his oppressors under a new persona.) The film is also explicit in portraying V as the embodiment of an idea rather than an individual through V's dialogue and by depicting him without